happy birthday, Jill!

Today is Jill's 38th birthday! In her honor, here are 38 things about her:

She reads the Book of Mormon every year and plans her schedule so that she finishes on her birthday. I love that.

She gave me one of the best gifts I've ever received last Christmas. She takes Eva for a whole day on one Wednesday every month just to give me some free time. Seriously such a gift of love and service!

She went on a 3-week trip this summer -- holy cow! -- and took an unbelievable amount of photos to document it.

She got to stay with her friend Betsy -- they've been best friends since high school and still make time to maintain their friendship -- it's inspiring. It must be fun to have their children get to know each other, too!

She got a recycling can this year.

Now she doesn't have to cart her carloads of stuff to the recycling center! (She's dedicated.)

She went to a shooting range with Enrichment and enjoyed it!

She's adventurous.

She finally got the black armoire she's been pining after for years!! Hallelujah!

She was a room mom at school and spent many hours volunteering for parties, going on field trips, and just generally helping the teachers.

She's had the good fortune to be able to take pictures during Primary this year! (Can you imagine having a photo of your child giving a talk?)

She got a new fridge! (sometimes there are benefits to having a landlord)

She discovered that she loves pedicures!

She is the most thorough, serious cleaner I know. (and she likes it!!)

She discovered a new motto when we went to Women's Conference.

She decided that she prefers plain brownies to mint brownies. She's a purist.

She inherited her mom's KitchenAid for her birthday, and I'm determined to teach her how to make bread, especially since she appreciates fresh-baked bread more than almost anyone I know!

One of her family goals is to spend more time together -- I love this picture of the whole family reading in her bed.

She has a love affair with postage and wishes the U.S. Postal Service would sell gift cards. Fortunately, she got a Visa card for her birthday so she can buy tons of stamps!

She discovered that she enjoys mowing the lawn, saying that it's like the ultimate vacuum!

She was the coach and assistant coach for her kids' soccer and football teams. That's dedication!

She is still the Queen of Good Mail and has a magic touch with labels and packaging.

She still gets headaches, but not (I think) as many as she used to.

She takes the best photos!

She does a great job of teaching her children to work and to be self-sufficient.

She regularly invites extra kids over to play -- cousins, neighbors, friends, and my kids as well. It's a kid's wonderland! In fact, she had my kids over yesterday for the whole day so I could get ready to host book club, and when I told Eva, she said, "I've been waiting to go to Jill's house!" She's the perfect hostess for adults and kids alike.

She doesn't shy away from self portraits. When her children and grandchildren look back on her pictures someday, they will know she was present in her own life.
She is still having major insomnia issues. Poor girl! She needs a solution to this problem ASAP.

She discovered that her beloved pebble ice is improved by the addition of Tang. I haven't had Tang since I was a child, but I tried it and I'm a fan! Who knew?

She could have a whole portfolio just of beautiful flower pictures.

She makes a concerted effort to keep up with her correspondence, and sends more thank yous and thoughtful notes than anyone I've ever known!

She is the best friend anyone could ever have -- she has a talent for friendship.

She wants to visit me again in Paris this Fall (actually she'd like to bring the whole family). She's looking for sponsors, ha!

She thinks that reading a book poolside while her kids swim is bliss. (Who wouldn't?) She has a family membership to the city pool and takes her kids there multiple times a week! If that doesn't earn her fun mom status, I don't know what will.

She is an awesome visiting teacher -- anyone would be lucky to be on her route!

She is completely dedicated to living her religion. She walks the walk. She knows what's right and she is determined to do it. That's a guaranteed recipe for happiness!

She shares. Whether it's her time, her talents, her humor, her frustrations, her food, her possessions -- she shares.

I am sure that she inspires more people than she will ever know.

I love you, Jill!!

wishes that cross 2064 miles

Today is my darling sister Jessie's birthday. On days like this, I really hate the 2064 miles that separate us. And I hold on to the anticipation of her visit next month!

A few things about Jessie:

She is the mother of 3 beautiful girls. Lola (deceased), Bella, and Fiona. I love them all. Jessie is a wonderful mother, and clever to boot. She really parents with intention, something I am always trying to improve at myself.

She is married to Timm, who I'm convinced is the perfect man for her! I love him, too.

She recently started running and has already run her first 5K race! You go, girl!

I am so impressed by this. When Jessie sets her mind to accomplish something, she is unstoppable.

She is a party planner extraordinaire! I wish I lived close enough to attend one of her parties.

She has an impeccable eye for detail -- the food, the decor, the invitations, the thank yous, everything is the cutest thing you've ever seen.

She is the Coupon Queen. She taught an Enrichment class on couponing and amazed everyone with the great deals she gets, freebies, etc. It's pretty amazing.

She also has the best handwriting!

She is one of the most creative people I've ever met, and that's saying something! Everything she touches turns to gold, and I have copied many of her designs.

She loves books as much as I do. She uses the library like crazy. Also, we like pretty much all the same books, which is handy for recommending and discussing.

Ditto on tv shows. She ended a recent phone conversation by saying, "Okay, I guess I won't talk to you while you're gone. Unless there's a dramatic reality tv event that we need to discuss."

She recently discovered a love of poker and jokes about playing for coupons.

She is pensive, introspective, and a real deep thinker.

She inspires me in so very many ways.

Happy birthday, Jess! I love you so.

Women's Conference day 2

Day 2 of Women's Conference started bright and early. Kristi and I woke up at 6:00 and 6:30, respectively, which was a good thing, because Kristi had to go to Salt Lake for her brother's graduation and Jill and I wanted to get there in time for Sister Beck's talk.

Jill dropped me off and went to park so that at least one of us would be on time. Fortunately, there were enough musical numbers that she still got there just in time! Some of my highlights:

-- If we don't do our part, no one else can do it for us. We are accountable for it. How will we account for what we did with the privileges we were given?

-- Influencing is ever so much more long-lasting than managing.

-- We are up against a deceitful, determined enemy. If he can lead away the influencers down the wrong path, he can take so many more with them.

-- Where you are weakest, put forth your most effort.

-- Someday we will meet our ancestors who will want to know what we did with the opportunities they provided for us.

-- You can do all the busy work, or you can be part of something bigger, something that will never be taken from you.

Spring is finally here!! Like Jill said, it was such a beautiful day -- the kind of day that makes you feel happy to be alive. Exactly.

Jill called Collette to see if she was free for lunch, since she works on campus. She's a busy girl, but she cleared her schedule for us. I had never seen her office before, so it was fun to see her in her element. We went to La Dolce Vita to eat (yum!), and since she has faculty/staff parking privileges, it was no sweat to leave campus and come back. I've never gone to lunch with Collette before, what a treat! Just one of the many things that contributed to my feeling free free free all weekend.

After lunch, we went to a class called Women of God.

-- God has an exalted plan for every one of us. We may settle for less, but he will not, because he sees the glorious beings we can become.

-- "Believe in your capacity to do good and great and worthwhile things." (President Hinckley)

-- We should continually check on the condition of our heart and its openness.

-- Who has tutored you along the path to righteous womanhood? Who might you provide similar tutelage for?

-- When we leave fear and discouragement behind, we can lift and comfort others.

-- We need to worry less about what others think of us and more about what the Lord thinks of us.

-- How would our lives change if we filled each day with:
faithfulness
humility
devotion
gratitude
willingness?

Our next class was:
Raising Daughters of our Heavenly Father

-- When you save a girl, you save generations.

-- There is a loss of refinement in our world.

-- Are our examples worthy of emulation? We are an open book to our children. They gain their attitudes and beliefs from us.

-- It doesn't matter who we aren't when we know who we are.

-- Satan wants us to see ourselves through the world's mirrors -- distorted, minimized, inferior.

-- If we aren't interested in and involved with our children, someone else will be.

-- I have a Heavenly Father.
He knows me.
He loves me.
He knows what is best for me.
If I follow his plan, I will be happy.

If our children really understand this, they will make good choices and find happiness.

-- Be yourself. Be your best self.

Then we went through the Cougareat to get Kristi a box of mint brownies, and then back to the Marriott Center to hear from President Monson. It's always so cool to witness a prophet entering a room, the way the crowd becomes completely silent, everyone stands, and then bursts spontaneously into "We Thank Thee O God For a Prophet". There is a tangible feeling of being a part of something sacred. My highlights:

-- Find joy in the journey now. There is no tomorrow to remember if we don't do something today.

-- Each day of our lives should be a special occasion. Don't wait to celebrate.

-- Try to keep your list of regrets as short as possible! Never let a problem to be solved get in the way of a person to be loved.

-- Occasionally, we might wonder why our Heavenly Father would allow us to experience particular trials. Our mortal life was never meant to be easy or consistently pleasant. He knows we experience growth and character refinement when we face sorrow, heartbreak, and difficult decisions.

-- As with gemstones, we become more beautiful when we overcome life's abrasive experiences. No pain that we experience is wasted. Our hearts are purified, our souls expanded.

Kristi was able to join us for the last part of President Monson's talk. Unfortunately, Jill had a terrible headache that was progressing toward migraine status, so we parted ways and she went home to take a Relpax and rest.

How did I forget how horrendous the traffic is after these events? It took us at least 1/2 hour to exit the parking lot.

We stopped off at Jamba Juice. Kristi says there are no smoothie places near her in D.C. (well, Maryland, really). I don't know that can be, but we had to fulfill another of the items on her Utah wishlist. We got slices of bread at Great Harvest to enjoy with our smoothies (check!). After this pit stop, we thought the traffic would have abated, but nope, it still took us about 1/2 hour to go up the hill to the mall!

Kristi wanted to check out Archiver's, and it did not disappoint. It was fun to go there with her and see her enthusiasm for everything.

To no one's surprise, Kristi made a new friend while in line to pay for her purchases -- she showed her what she was buying, how cool it was, and basically talked the other woman into buying one as well. She should get a commission!

Kristi with her Archiver's purchases. It was definitely a happy place for her.

We stopped off for Cafe Rio to bring dinner home to Jill. Crazy blurry self-portrait we took in front of the craziness that is Cafe Rio. Kristi was able to see why it is so great to call in your order ahead of time and walk past the huge line right up to the cash register! Kristi had heard so much about Cafe Rio, and had huge expectations, but still managed to be happily surprised by how good it was -- how often does that happen??

Jill was awake and feeling much better (although somewhat hung over), and after dinner she suggested playing Sing Star. Kristi shocked us by saying that that was way out of her comfort zone. Seriously? And then literally 10 seconds later, she was up dancing and singing her heart out. Yeah, we really pushed her boundaries on that one.

Not long after, Tasha came over to hang out with us. (So great that she was staying in American Fork!) I would say it took about 15 minutes for Kristi to completely conk out:

She was exhausted. But it was so funny to know that mere minutes before she was spazzing out!

Tasha suggested that we wrap door prizes for the blog party:

the huge box of door prizes we took to the party (and this was before many other brought more!)

Tasha hanging out with Jill in her room of happiness. She seemed totally at ease, which is how people normally feel at Jill's house -- it's a gift.

We went to bed at 2:30. (I say we because I thought Jill and I went to bed at the same time. I found out later that she couldn't sleep and was up until 5:00! Good grief.)